Playing Ninja Redux
by Orpheus Kidwell
Summary: Rewrite of Playing Ninja. He may have been bedridden for what little he had of his previous life, but Naruto was not about to let this one go to waste. If people thought he was a cheater, so be it. If they thought he was breaking rules, so be it. He knew the truth, he was just a Power Gamer, and there was no way he would let his party fall behind. Gamer!Reincarnation!Naruto
1. Chapter I: Character Generation

**Playing Ninja**

 **Alright, so yeah, rewrote this one. However, I have a legitimate reason. The reason I stopped on the previous one was because I was still trying to figure out the systems I wanted for the game, and then I started getting some help from both Alvor the Warhawk and Crimson-Wyvern, and it was a vast improvement, but also meant the system was so completely different from before that I had to make major alterations. With that in mind, I decided to start again with this story and got two moderately long chapters and am working on the next chapter already, so I hope that makes up for it to some extent.**

 **I'll allow you to read now though!**

 **Chapter I: Character Generation**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, The Gamer or Konosuba. They belong to their respective owners.**

The only thing that he could see was darkness. No matter where he turned his head, it was pitch black. He knew he was sitting down, but he didn't dare get up. He couldn't feel anything solid beneath his feet and that was what stopped him. If he tried… there was no telling how far away the floor was. He had no idea how long he had been there. He didn't even know where he was for that matter. Still, at least he wasn't restrained to his bed any longer with those incessant beeping noises and doctors always injecting him with weird sounding medications.

"Ah, sorry about being so late, you would not believe how busy I am these days. Hm, that's strange, the lights should have been on as soon as you arrived." After the sound of someone clapping twice, the room was filled with light and he had to let his eyes adjust. When the lights came on, the boy was revealed to have messy spikes of blonde hair, two cerulean eyes and three whisker-like birthmarks under each eye. The boy himself was likely only seven years old and sat on a wooden stool, his feet hanging off with a gap of well over a foot between the soles and the floor. His skin seemed to be unnaturally pale with an almost sickly tinge. "You're Naruto, right?" The voice asked.

Naruto – as he was named – nodded as he looked at the speaker. It was a man with shoulder-length, jet black hair and a pair of obsidian-colored eyes that contrasted against his pale skin. He wore a black robe with a black bladed broadsword of all things on his waist. The man took a seat on a bone-white chair that looked more like a throne than anything and snapped, a manila folder appearing in his hands out of a cloud of smoke that smelled like sulfur. "Where am I?" Naruto asked curiously. "And why am I not at the manor anymore?"

The man smiled a bit sadly to the boy. "Well, introduction first. I am Hades. Normally Izanami would cover those who pass from your region, but she's gone and taken her maternity leave. You think she would've stopped after Kagutsuchi, but apparently not. I am a god of death. In your culture, I believe it is referred to as a Shinigami." He opened the folder. "According to this… you are Uzumaki Naruto. Time of death was October 9 at 11:12 AM, you would've been ten years old tomorrow. It says your cause of death was a mild case of Influenza that you could not fight off due to your Immunodeficiency of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. Such misfortune for someone so young…"

Naruto widened his eyes at what Hades was telling him. "Wh-what do you mean? Are you saying that I'm dead?" The man nodded his head once, causing Naruto to widen his eyes ever so slightly before nodding. He had always known it would happen but this was… still surprising.

"Unfortunately, there is no reversing this but I shall give you a bit of news right now." Naruto looked back up at Hades. "Due to an agreement between the gods of this world and another one, when someone dies before their time we offer them a choice. As is tradition, you can have your memories wiped and be reborn on Earth again and hope that the luck of the dice helps you out with something better this time. Your other option is to be reborn into a new world. In reality, this world was actually created by humans and is what is called an MMO, I believe. It's something of an alternate history sort of game, with magic and technology set in the feudal era. It was developed by your family's company actually. Quite a bit of people have chosen to be reborn into this world, so what do you say?"

Naruto looked at the god of death upon hearing the choice. "Will I still have my memories?" He asked the man, who nodded. "I think I want to go into the game… it could be fun." He grinned. "Yeah, no more doctors for me… being an adventurer sounds fun. And if mom's company made it, I know it'll be really fun!"

"Ah, one last thing I should explain to you is that the way the world is set up, you will have to live it out in real time. I'll send you there in a body the same as what you have now, so you'll have to attend the Academy there for several years as a student before actually becoming a ninja. I suggest finding the other Players in the village you'll be sent to so they can teach you how to do things. Technically you'll be on a… what is it called… a private server, as it were. Only people that are reborn will be Players there and no one from Earth can access it. I'm sure you'll be able to figure everything out though."

Hades looked as if he was contemplating something before sitting up straighter. "Ah, I nearly forgot. As you are a player, you need something unique to separate you from both the NPCs and other Players. Each Player receives a special Ability before they are sent there by whoever the Shinigami that sends them is. Usually, it's something related to the Player, either their life or their death. Let's see…" He hummed to himself before smiling. "Since you had no time to do anything last life, this life I want you to be able to do everything. Yes, that will be your Ability. Now, have fun playing ninja in War of the Elements!" Hades announced as he snapped his fingers, bringing darkness to Naruto once more.

 **[World in Between]**

Naruto found himself in a new place once more, though at least there was light this time. "Greetings, new Player." A calm voice resounded. Looking around, he was met with the strange sight of a yellow-eyed green toad with a white beard, thick, white eyebrows and a tuft of white hair in the center of the rear of his head that stood upright and held a staff in one hand, a brown cloak wrapping up his whole body except the head. "I am Fukusaku, Sage Toad of Mt. Myoboku. I shall guide you through your character generation."

Naruto looked down at the creature for a few moments before nodding. It was a game after all, so of course there would be strange things. Especially since his mother was on the development team for this particular game. Uzumaki Kushina was certainly a woman with strange tastes and an even stranger imagination. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto introduced himself.

"Yes, Hades-sama sent me a detailed report of your first life leading up to your death. Taking into account things from your former life usually allows for character generation to be nearly automatic, however whenever a child as young as you is sent here, it becomes more difficult. Still, there is a process for something such as this. Before we continue, I will need to show you a few things. As a Player Character, you have access to a few perks the NPCs do not. The most important of these are your menus. They are summoned by a vocal command and can only be seen by you or others you grant permission. Please say 'Character Generation' if you would."

"Character generation!" Naruto announced, watching as a holographic screen appeared in front of him. There were many different information slots, some filled and some blank. The information already there showed that his name was Uzumaki Naruto, his age of 7, his birthday on October 10, labeled his occupation as student. It was odd that his level was zero and his class said N/A though. "Fukusaku, what's up with my level and class?" The toad nodded and began to explain.

"Ah yes. There is a very particular leveling system that is directly related to your class. There are eight basic class archetypes: Fighter, Mystic, Rogue, Ranger, Cleric, Performer, Scholar and Artisan. All classes fit into at least one of these larger archetypes somehow. When you gain experience, you can spend it in the class of your choice until you've leveled up in said class. You are currently level 0 because you haven't taken a level in any class. When you do start classing, or multi-classing, your level will be equivalent to the amount of levels you've taken across every class. If you take three into Ranger, two into Mystic, and four into Cleric, your level would read as nine, for instance." Naruto nodded to show his understanding. "During character generation you have enough experience to take one level in one of the eight basic classes, assuming you meet the stat requirements."

Naruto contemplated that before nodding again. "What is the character generation process, anyways?" He wondered curiously.

"Ah, that is simple. Based off of older RPGs, we use a roll system. The system will make dice rolls off of different categories and grant you options to choose from. We won't simply leave you to the mercy of RNG, that is to say Random Number Generation, after over each of the slots and give the system the command of 'roll' after stating the category."

Naruto looked over the empty slots and found they were birth village, family, origin, inherent ability, clan status, bloodline, perks and flaws. _May as well go in order, right?_ He thought to himself. "Birth Village Roll!" Naruto announced before a second holographic image appeared. It looked like a three-dimensional roulette wheel with several names on slots that were different sizes. Below the wheel, the system asked **Would you like to perform the roll? Yes(Y) No(N)**. Naruto hit the affirmative and watched as two balls dropped into it before it began to spin.

When the wheel finally stopped, they landed on Konoha and Kusa. "I think this is a good time to teach you about one of the the most basic abilities that Players possess." Fukusaku stated, gaining the blonde's attention. "All Players start with an ability called Observe. It allows you to see information relating to the item, location or character you are looking at with more information becoming available as you level it up or the higher your Perception stat is. With active skills such as Observe, simply state the name of the skill and it will activate."

"How do I level up skills?" Naruto wondered curiously.

"There are two ways. The first is to use the skills often. Every time you use a skill, it gains an amount of Experience Points. The second is to use Skill Points. You gain Skill Points every level, a total of one for every five levels of Wisdom you have that can be spent to give your skills experience without training them. You can also gain skill points by paying tutors or by reading the proper books and scrolls, though those are points that can only be used for a specific skill tree or even a very specific set of skills. Most players use all of these methods to get certain skills up quickly."

Naruto nodded and spoke the command. "Observe!" A screen popped up to both the left and right of the roulette wheel with a bit of text on each.

 _[Kusagakure no Sato – Location (Ninja Village)]_

 _The hidden ninja village in the Land of Grass. It is hidden by a field of large grass with many ninja specializing in Earth and Water elemental ninjutsu. It is allied to the Konoha, Suna and Taki._

 _[Konohagakure no Sato – Location (Great Ninja Village)]_

 _The hidden ninja village in the Land of Fire. It is hidden by a large forest created by its first leader. The ninja specialize in many different areas and as one of the Five Great Ninja Villages it is much stronger than minor villages. It is allied to Suna, Kusa and Taki._

"When you've made your decision use the command 'Generate: Konoha' or 'Generate: Kusa'." Fukusaku explained. "You can make your decisions about the other rolls similarly." Naruto nodded to the Toad and looked between the two windows.

"Well, if Konoha is a larger village it probably has more quests and more characters to learn from. That means it'll be easier to get some cool skills!" He grinned at the thought. "Generate: Konoha!" The roulette and two information windows disappeared as the Character Generation menu filled in the Birth Village slot with Konoha. "Family Roll!" Similar to last time, a roulette and the option appeared, so he picked yes. Unlike last time, only one ball dropped to the roulette. "Why is there only one this time?"

"Hm… I must have forgot to mention that the rolls themselves have a roll to determine the number of options. Each roll has the chance to have one, two or three balls. Usually no one gets one ball, but that means it's very unlikely you'll get any other one-ball rolls." Naruto looked at the wheel and tilted his head. "What is it?"

"It says my family is orphan. So, I'll end up living in the orphanage and my parents are dead..." Naruto hummed in thought as he turned to the Toad. "How do families for kids like me work anyways? Are we assigned to other Player Characters or what?"

"As for that, it is possible. A Player Character couple can submit an application through the system to receive a child but that is uncommon. What happens more often is that the NPCs have their own child and you simply take their place, the memories of any other NPCs that knew the character you replaced being altered for a smooth transition. It is a very simple system and allows for Player Characters to be generated into any role or age group. As an orphan, you will be generated to take the place of someone there depending on what your origin and clan status end up being. I suggest you do those two next and then bloodline after clan status, as that is a pre-requisite. Once all of those are done, the system will assign perks, flaws and a title to you."

"Alright then. Origin Roll!" Naruto announced again to activate the roulette. This time only one ball dropped again, much to the surprise of Fukusaku. The ball rolled around and landed on possibly the most slim of the sections, one that was a very different color than all the others. "Observe!"

 **[Pariah/Hidden Noble - Origin]**

 **The great always fall the furthest. Even though your family was nobility, through circumstances you are an outcast from birth, no one even aware of your status. Might be best to play the part and keep your blue blood secret though, there's no telling how many enemies they made!**

"Hm… that's an interesting origin story to work with." Naruto commented, not noticing Fukusaku's apt attention on Naruto's roulette now, whereas he had only a passing interest in it. "Generate Pariah Hidden Noble! Clan Status Roll! Observe!" This time, he actually had two options again.

 **[Hyuuga Clan Outcast - Clan Status]**

 **One of your parents bore the Caged Bird Seal after being ousted from the all-seeing Hyuuga Clan. Now you have to wear contacts to hide your heritage and if anyone finds out about your eyes, you'll surely be punished severely.**

 **[Uzumaki Clan Survivor - Clan Status]**

 **The Uzumaki Clan were natives to the Land of Whirlpools and ruling family of the now destroyed Uzushiogakure. Masters of sealing and with a healing factor that is second to none, they were feared by all! Scattered as the survivors of their massacre may be, they are still strong and a large threat to anyone unlucky enough to face them!**

Naruto looked at the second one and couldn't help but chuckle. "Oh, mom, of course you'd name a powerful clan after us. Even if it wasn't objectively the better decision, I think I'd still choose to keep my mother's name." Naruto noted before generating it to his character sheet. "Hm? What's this?" He wondered as a new pop-up window appeared. "Bloodline acquired: Thanks to your Uzumaki Clan Heritage, you have gained the Uzuchi bloodline and opened the Uzumaki Clan Skill Tree. Observe!"

 **[Uzuchi - Bloodline Limit (Corporeal)]**

 **A passive bloodline belonging to the Uzumaki Clan. It opens up the Uzuchi skill tree and grants the skills Regenerative Healing, Sealing Proficiency and Dense Chakra.**

Naruto hummed in thought before a smile broke out. "Bloodlines, eh? Sounds like the equivalent to a racial tree. This could be interesting, especially if mine grants passive boosts." Glancing back at his Character Generation menu, Naruto noted a new pop-up. **Character Generation is complete. Would you like to continue to Perks and Flaws?** Hitting the Yes option, Naruto noticed that the toad looked as if he wanted the boy's attention, so he gave it.

"Now that you've finished that, allow me to explain Perks and Flaws." Naruto nodded, though he had a rough idea of what they could be. It was likely a spin on a Feat system. "Perks and Flaws are attributes that each character gains either at birth or through actions that can grant stat boosts, act as requirements for certain skills and classes and affect what characters are and are not allowed to do." Naruto nodded his understanding.

"So, yeah, they're like a Feat system, just without a level-up requirement, right?" Fukusaku nodded, showing the boy was right. Naruto grinned, glad to find some familiar ground. He looked at the pop-ups that had sprang into existence when he wasn't paying attention and looked over them.

 **[Perks]**

 **Ancient Ninja Clan Heritage: Being a member of one of the oldest ninja clans of the Elemental Nations make you naturally agile, granting a +25 bonus to Dexterity.**

 **Forest Dweller: Growing up in the forest has its benefits! While in Forest terrain, you gain +25% Movement Speed and Stealth.**

 **Pariah: You may have been outcast, but it certainly puts things into perspective, like survival! You gain 25 points in Wisdom, 15 points in Perception and 10 points in Dexterity. You also seem to be 50% better at gambling than other people.**

 **Senju Clan Heritage: The Senju are said to have inherited the Body of the Sage of Six Paths! Temporary active buffs are twice as effective while debuffs are half as effective against you. Anything with a Vitality requirement has its requirement cut in half. Vitality and Dexterity are increased by 50 points as well.**

 **Thousand Hands: The Senju Blood is versatile and can do many things! All permanent bonuses are twice as effective.**

 **Uzumaki Clan Healing: The Uzumaki Blood runs through your veins! Thanks to this, you get a 50% boost to HP Regeneration, a 50% resistance to poison and disease and a 50 point bonus to Vitality.**

 **Uzumaki Clan Heritage: The Uzumaki have always been masters of sealing and you are no different! All Fuinjutsu skills gain double XP and have double effectiveness.**

 **Vessel of the Nine-Tails: Locked within you is a literal demon! With the Nine-Tailed Fox sealed within you, you gain double CP, get a bonus of 50 points to Vitality, a 50% bonus to HP and CP Regeneration and access to the Nine-Tails skill tree.**

 **[Flaws]**

 **Orphan: Tough luck kid, but maybe your family will turn out a little better? Being an orphan inhibits all social skills by 15%.**

 **Pariah: Through either your parents or your deeds, you've gained the dislike if not outright hatred of an entire faction! Being brought up as a pariah, you lose 25 points to Charisma, 15 points to Luck and 10 points to Vitality. You also have a 50% harder time in social interactions.**

 **Thousand Hands: Specialization is the enemy of versatility! All permanent detriments are twice as effective.**

 **Vessel of the Nine Tails: Locked within you is a literal inner demon! You lose 100% more reputation with anyone who knows of your jinchuuriki status and are 25% more intimidating.**

"Hey, Fukusaku, what's a jinchuuriki?" Naruto asked curiously. "I got a Perk and Flaw called 'Vessel of the Nine-Tails' and it mentions my jinchuuriki status."

"I see…" The toad muttered. "It would seem your orphan, pariah and Uzumaki statuses have combined with your home village to grant you jinchuuriki status. I should have guessed as much would occur. There are nine bijuu in the Elemental Nations, you might think of them as Demon Lords of sorts, only they are comprised entirely out of chakra, the main source of energy for the Nations. To prevent them from wreaking havoc and destruction as they pleased, as they once did, the Players and NPCs of this world have developed a technique to seal them inside of nine humans. These humans are known as jinchuuriki and have the ability to access their demonic powers as well as gain large boosts from each one. The nine bijuu also have a set of very specific and unique abilities that they grant their jinchuuriki. Due to their nature as avatars of destruction, the jinchuuriki are ostracized among the denizens. The NPCs fear them for their history, the Players fear them for the power they can bring to bear against them and nearly everyone either wants to use them as weapons or want them dead." Naruto nodded, taking in the lore as if it was air he was breathing.

"Well, good thing I've never been one to roleplay." Naruto noted with a grin. "This sort of thing seems like more of a blessing than a curse." Fukusaku shook his head at the boy. He was one of _those_ types, the power gamers. "Is there anything left for me to do, Fukusaku?" The toad nodded and tapped his staff against the ground twice. As he did, eight pedestals rose up around the blonde.

"These eight objects embody the eight archetypical classes of the world. The Fighter's blade, the Ranger's bow, the Rogue's dagger, the Cleric's Staff, the Mystic's Wand, the Scholar's Tome, the Performer's Lyre and the Artisan's Hammer." Tapping the staff once more, Fukusaku waited. Naruto watched as the Tome and the Lyre began to dissipate, as well as the dais they were situated upon. "According to your stats, these are the classes you may choose from." Naruto looked at the six remaining and then back at the Toad. "Do you have a question?"

"A few, actually." He responded. "My first question is regarding the class system. You've kept saying archetypical classes, so I'm assuming that means there are classes other than these?"

Fukusaku nodded. "There are several thousand possible classes, but all originate from these eight. Through a combination of class prestige and class fusion, the others can be formed, though the process for each is very particular. Class prestige requires all skills in the class tree to be learned, either through skill points or through skill activation, and then to level-up in that class. Leveling up in a class you've already leveled in will grant you various bonuses that add onto the class's intended playstyle. Each class has a total of ten possible levels you may take into it, as well. Class Fusion is a similar process where you must gain specific skills of specific classes in order to create a new class that uses abilities of two or more individual ones. Anything else?"

"Yeah, how can I look at my current stats?" Fukusaku tapped his staff and showed Naruto a screen with text on it. "Hm… Vitality, Dexterity, Wisdom, Intelligence, Perception, Charisma and Luck, huh? Alright, it looks like my Vitality is _way_ higher than my other stats, so it's pretty easy to choose my class." Walking over to the pedestal with the sword, Naruto picked it up and watched as all five of the other's disappeared.

"There's one last thing before you go." Fukusaku explained. "As a Player Character, the Shinigami who placed you here would have given you a Unique Ability that only you can use. Hades-sama has already picked it out." Tapping the staff once more, Fukusaku forced another window to pop-up.

"Scan?" Naruto read the name of the ability and began to go through the description. "As someone who couldn't do anything all your life, I'll give you the chance to do whatever you want. Using this ability on characters, objects and locations will give you an incredibly in-depth look into it that will far outclass Observe at higher levels. On locations, it will grant you the ability to see the locations of all mobs, NPCs, Players and even the Boss. On objects, you can see all stat changes it would grant you as well as where those stat changes came from, along with a line of the owners of an object. On characters (NPCs, Players, mobs and bosses), you will be able to see their skill trees, stats and classes. Your menus will automatically memorize this information as well. Good luck! -Hades." Fukusaku smiled at the Death God's decision before looking back at the blonde.

"Welcome, Fighter, to the War of Elements. May your adventures be many and your life long." Fukusaku toasted with a bow. "Farewell and godspeed." Naruto grinned as everything began fading again. _This should be fun. Thanks, mom._


	2. Chapter II: The Library

**Playing Ninja**

 **Chapter II**

 **Welcome to Konohagakure no Sato! Please enjoy your time playing!**

 **New Perk Acquired: [Forest Dweller]**

 **New Title Acquired: [Pariah], [of Konohagakure], [of the Uzumaki Clan] and [Unknown]**

Before Naruto could even regain his bearings from being transported by Fukusaku, three messages popped up. The first was just a welcome message but the other two intrigued him. Closing the welcome message, he decided to do what any new player would. "Scan!"

 **[Forest Dweller – Perk]**

 **Growing up in a forest has its benefits! While in forest terrain, gain +25% Movement Speed and Stealth. Grants the [Forage] and [Track] Skills. Opens the [Forest Survival] Skill Tree.**

"That's actually pretty useful." Naruto commented and closed it before looking at the one about Titles. "Hm… titles, eh?" As he asked, another window popped up.

 **[Frequently Asked Questions]**

 **Q: What's a Title?**

 **A: A Title is a nickname or moniker that can be equipped or de-equipped. It is made up of a pre-fix, a base and a suffix that each give independent effects. They are earned through special actions. Some titles are required in order to do certain things and all of them give either a boost or a detriment to a Player Character's stats. Use them wisely!**

"Thanks for that unneeded information." Naruto mumbled. "This game has got everything, even an FAQ. Guess kaa-san and her team are one of the best for a reason. Hm… wonder what effects these have? Scan!"

 **[Pariah – Title (Base)]**

 **Bad luck kid, but life ain't all bad! Karma takes notice of you and feels so much pity that you gain +25 Luck.**

 **[of Konohagakure – Title (Suffix)]**

 **Looks like you lucked out being born in the greatest ninja village! You gain a boost in XP depending on your ninja rank! Current boost: 5% boost.**

 **[of the Uzumaki Clan – Title (Suffix)]**

 **We may be scattered, but blood ties us close together! The Uzumaki Clan had a bond unlike any other family and the clan members gain +25 Charisma because of this.**

 **[Unknown – Title (Prefix)]**

 **There are no records of your deeds yet! Is that a good thing or a bad thing? In areas where you have 0 Reputation, your Stealth increases by 100% but Persuasion is 100% harder.**

Reading the four title options, Naruto noted that there were options on the menus to equip them. "Unknown Pariah of… the Uzumaki Clan it is. The XP boost is great but Charisma will be better to counter my Pariah Flaw. Hm… I still don't even know anything about my stats though. Let's see. Stat menu?" He grinned as it worked, a menu popping up.

 **Level 1 Fighter**

 **HP: 760 (Regen: 387/min; 6~/sec)**

 **CP: 1440 (Regen: 4/sec)**

 **Vitality: 330**

 **Dexterity: 120**

 **Intelligence: 50**

 **Wisdom: 100**

 **Perception: 80**

 **Charisma: 50**

 **Luck: 70**

 **XP: 0**

"Well, glad to know how to access that whenever I want. Looks like taking the Fighter class didn't affect my stats at all. That's probably for the best, I think." Looking at his lowest stats, those being Intelligence and Charisma, Naruto thought a moment. "I think that 50 might be the base value for stats in this game. That means the stats probably get pretty high on their higher end." Shaking his head from that, Naruto pondered a moment. "No, don't make any assumptions. If I'm going to do this right, I need to get a good handle on exact information before I make any important decisions."

Looking around at his environment, he noted that he was currently in what appeared to be a basement, if the pipes running along the ceiling was any indication. "Hm… seems like being an orphan pariah really makes my living space horrid. I should probably find a way to get a new place as soon as I can. I wonder if there's a Player Home system in here?"

 **Q: What are Player Homes?**

 **A: Player Homes are buildings that Players can buy and then either inhabit, sell or rent out. All buildings that are labeled with the tag [Residence] are potential Player Homes provided the Player has enough money to purchase them or pay the rent. When marriage occurs, all Players Homes owned by one character are now shared by those married and when a character dies all of their property, including Player Homes, are inherited by the next of kin unless a will has been established prior to their death. See also: Real Estate, Investing, Last Will and Testament**

Naruto hummed at that and smiled. "That's interesting. So, looks like I'll need to do some farming and get a better place to stay as soon as I can. Lets see… What's the stat cap?" He asked, hoping the system would find the right page.

 **Q: How high can my stats go?**

 **A: HP and CP have no hard cap, neither do their regeneration stats. Levels also have no cap. Vitality, Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom, Perception, Charisma and Luck cap out at 10,000 as of the most current update. Buffs can allow the stats to overcome even that cap, however, as the cap is only for the base stat.**

"Ten thousand? Geez, mom, what is wrong with you?" Naruto asked incredulously. "Alright, well, I can work with that. Even if my Vitality is pretty high, it's nowhere near the cap. Let's see… what else do I need before I head out?" Thinking for a moment, Naruto asked something else. "How do I increase my base stats?

 **Q: Is there any way to train my stats?**

 **A: Base stats can be increased in one of three ways as of the current update. The first is to use the stat points that are gained each level up, which are given at a rate of one point per 10 points of Wisdom rounded down. The second way is to pay a skill or class tutor to give you observed training, which will increase both stats and skills related to the skill or class. The third way is to perform activities related to the stat. Exercising will train Vitality, practicing forms with weapons and unarmed combat will train Dexterity, Reading will increasing Intelligence and Wisdom, Interacting with characters will train Charisma, noticing things that others may not will train Perception and winning games of chance will train Luck. These are only some examples and you can find your own preferred way of training stats, but performing the same task in the same way will provide less returns each time. Reading the same book multiple times will eventually provide no training, for instance.**

Naruto closed the window and thought a moment about the things he had just learned. "Okay, that's actually important to know. It seems leveling is unnecessary to get stats to increase." The blonde thought a moment more about any questions he might have until nothing came to mind. "I think that should be enough for now. Inventory. Let's see here, ryou? I suppose that's the currency here. Looks like I've got 50. That's probably an extremely low amount to start with. Aside from the clothes I've already got on, looks like I actually do start with a weapon, though its just a bokken. Still, it should be fine until I get an actual sword." He equipped it and watched as it materialized on his left hip. "There's so much realism here I was almost beginning to think there wouldn't be any game elements left. Glad to see something familiar."

Content with what he had figured out, Naruto decided to see what he could find out about the room. "Scan."

 **[Orphanage Basement - Player Home]**

 **The home of Naruto Uzumaki. Being part of a decades old building, it has wear and tear but is in relatively good condition. The only furniture is a bed and some old, worn down dressers and tables that were in too much disrepair for the normal orphans to use. Pipes filled with running water line the ceiling and walls while there is a [Sewer Connection] in the center of the room that is large enough to move through provided the seal is taken off. All the walls are made of concrete to provide foundational strength. Value: $0, [Non-Salable, non-tradable, temporary ownership]**

"Hm… sewer connection? That could be interesting to explore later." Naruto noted as he looked around and found the dressers that the description spoke of. Opening the drawers and moving through their contents, he found they mostly were filled with clothes of different sorts. There was a small amount of ryou as well as a few rusty kunai. He took the money as well as a few outfits and placed them in his inventory. He figured that he wouldn't be back here for a while. Unfortunately he couldn't locate anything even close to food or healing items, but he'd just have to make do for a bit.

With that in mind, Naruto looked around for the exit before noticing that there were two. He could either go upstairs into the orphanage, or take the cellar door to go directly outside. With a small grin, he decided to take the sneaky way out and opened one of the storm doors. As soon as he exited his 'home', Naruto was enveloped in something he never thought he'd experience again. He could feel the warmth of the sun on his skin, the breeze against his face and could smell the fresh air of a forested area. He was finally able to go _outside_! With a grin, Naruto began walking as a message popped up.

 **You've discovered Konoha Orphanage! Konohagakure Map: 3% Complete**

"Oh? That's pretty cool. Map." With the command, another window popped up where he could see a white blip with an arrow pointing northeast in the center that he assumed was himself. Around it was the layout of his immediate area. Wanting to perform a little experiment, the blonde took a few dozen steps forward while keeping the map screen open and watched as the area he walked through showed itself on the map. "So the map creates itself as I go to areas, that's about what I figured would happen."

Closing the screen, Naruto thought about what might be a good thing to start with. "Well, I may as well see if I can find any other Players." He muttered to himself and continued to walk the same direction as before, closing the menus that declared he'd discovered a few shops and restaurants, two apartment complexes and the Market District. As he passed each character, he noted that no matter the expression beforehand, they looked at him with hateful glares, sickened sneers or terrified trembling. All in all, Naruto had to applaud the developers for _really_ making it seem like the citizens would kill him if given half the opportunity. _Mental note: Don't give them even a percent of an opportunity on the off-chance that they'll take it._

As he had arrived at the Market District though, Naruto began looking around. It was a bit difficult to see if anyone was a Player, but there was a surefire way he could figure it out, he though. "Scan. Scan. Scan. Scan." Spamming was not even close to the proper terminology for what Naruto was doing with his Unique Ability. Every character he used it on, he gained the ability to see their name, their level, their class structure, their skill trees - though only the name of the skills, oddly enough, and a list of achievements they've done. Most importantly, next to their name was the **[NPC]** tag for a supermajority of them, until Naruto finally found a boy sitting on the ground and looking at people as they passed by. As he approached him, Naruto and the boy looked at each other.

"Scan."

"Observe."

"..." The pair looked at each other for a few moments before the boy stood and dusted his pants off. He had black hair that was fashioned into a pineapple-shaped ponytail and black eyes. He wore a grey shirt with some sort of emblem on the chest, a pair of blue shorts and blue sandals, as well as had a pouch on his right hip. "You're a Player too?" The boy, Naruto noted his name was Shikamaru Nara, asked. The blonde nodded his head. "I'm Shikamaru."

"Naruto." Glancing at his Scan screen again, Naruto noted that all of the boy's stats aside from Luck were higher than the baseline 50, though his highest was only 100, being Intelligence. He was also a Noble and a Rogue, and only Level 1, like himself. "How long have you been here then?" Naruto couldn't help but wonder.

"Me? I've only been here for…" Looking up at the sky, Shikamaru frowned. "I'd say about three hours? After Character Generation I decided to explore a little and ended up here. I imagined that other Players might get here at some point, so I decided to Observe as much as I could until I got hungry. I never really got hungry and lost track of time as I kept reading the things I read about different characters. I ended up leveling up Observe pretty high, actually. My Perception jumped up some as well." Naruto nodded. "What was that skill you used? Was that a higher version of Observe?"

"You mean Scan? No, that was the Unique Ability that Hades gave me. It apparently goes far more in-depth than Observe does, so I decided to use it instead." Naruto explained. "I've only been here about half an hour myself and came here for the same reason. If you aren't doing anything except waiting for other Players, why don't we join up to try and learn about this place?" Shikamaru thought about it a moment before shrugging. "Let's see… Invite Shikamaru to Party?" Naruto asked and grinned as Shikamaru seemed to be reading a menu.

"What's this?" The boy asked curiously.

"You haven't played many games have you?" Naruto wondered. "A party is formed whenever a group of players come together for a common purpose, usually a quest of some sort, and allows them to keep an eye on each other's status, location and communicate between each other where others in the surrounding area can't see or hear what they're saying, depending if its a text or voice based messaging system." Shikamaru thought about that before nodding. He then hit the air and Naruto received a notification that Shikamaru had joined the party. As he did so, a set of names appeared in the corner of his vision denoting both him and Shikamaru and the respective HP and CP bars of both of them. "So, how much have you explored so far?" Naruto asked. Shikamaru brought up his map and Naruto found that he could actually see the window. "Well, it looks like you can see the screens of people in your party."

Shikamaru seemed surprised, but took it in stride and moved the map so the two of them could see it. "This is where we are. I think you're the green dot right here next to me, these yellow ones are the NPCs I've Observed, blue means characters that have unknown status. Green are allies, or maybe family, but that's these up here." He pointed to a place on his map full of green dots moving around. "That's the Nara Clan Compound, where my NPC family lives. I didn't really see any other Players there, so either they're out on a quest or I'm the only Nara Player right now."

"I haven't even tried testing the other orphans, but there might be some now that I think about it. I might get to it later, but I'm stuck living in the basement so I'm not even sure that I'm welcome upstairs." Shikamaru winced.

"Bad rolls, huh?" Naruto nodded. "Sorry to hear that, but your stats are certainly higher than mine for the most part. After I got Observe to to Level 10, I was able to start seeing a general area of people's stats, so I can see yours are pretty good."

"Well, I got a rocky start but my default stats sort of make up for it, I guess." Shrugging that off, Naruto looked over the map before he got a notification. **Your map has been updated.** He closed the notification and filed the information away for later. "This building here in the Clan District, is that the library?" He asked Shikamaru, reading the text on it. Getting a nod, Naruto opened his own map and zoomed in on the library. "Let's see… is there a way to mark it for navigation?" In front of the pair, a window appeared.

 **Q: Can I mark my map for navigation?**

 **A: Yes. By tapping on a location twice, a menu will ask you if you'd like to mark a location for travel. If you do this, the quickest way to get there, based on your current map, will show itself. Once you reach the location, the trail will disappear. Anyone in your party can set a location for navigation and it will show up on the maps of everyone in the party. There is also no limit to the amount of locations that can be marked for navigation. All quests will be marked for navigation by default, though this can be disabled in the settings.**

Naruto followed the instructions and marked the library for navigation. "Alright, library it is."

"So, why are we headed to the library?" Shikamaru asked as they began to follow the dotted trail that suspended itself in midair. "More accurately, why are we headed there right now, I guess?" Naruto decided to stifle down a sarcastic response and instead explain it to the boy.

"Well, both of us have been here very shortly, it's our first day so to speak. Technically, the rules of our universe could apply to this one. But, it is also just as likely that none of our rules do. For one, we're in what seems to be feudal Japan, but there's running water and electricity, so historical accuracy isn't exactly going to be a way to navigate. The best way to learn about our new home is to head to the library and read. If we can find out anything concrete about the rules here we'll be better off than we are right now.

"I'm what you might call a… power gamer." Naruto explained. "I like to have all the information of a game and then take every possible advantage I can get my hands on to create a character so broken I can easily do things that people several times my level can't. Getting access to lore is a good way to find out the rules of a game in a circular sort of way when you don't have access to the formulas that actually rule the game." Shikamaru nodded his understanding, onboard with Naruto's plan now.

"Well, I do know one thing for sure that will help us. We only have to eat and drink to heal and only have to sleep for 30 minutes every night. We also don't have to go to the bathroom, apparently. It's part of one of our passive skills called 'Gamer's Body'. It should give us an advantage if we have to do as much research as you're implying." The blonde let a smile form on his lips as he gained _that_ information. Not only did he finally have a body rid of the cancer he once had to bare daily, but he was _better_ than a baseline adult on that world in some ways. And he was only ten! _Happy birthday to me, I guess._ Naruto couldn't help but think.

"That should help us tremendously." Naruto assured Shikamaru as they arrived at the library. "Alright, let's see. Scan." Quickly glancing over the building's description, Naruto determined something quickly. "Well, it's good we only want to learn the basics of this world."

"Why's that?" Shikamaru asked until Naruto showed the description to Shikamaru. "We can only access books according to our ranking in the Konoha military, huh? So, given we're students at the Konohagakure Shinobi Academy…"

"We're kind of stuck to the same level as civilians. Maybe a little higher." Naruto sighed, but shook his head. "It's fine, it's fine, we just need to focus on what we can do now, not worry about what we can't do yet." With that, the two made their way inside. Looking around, the pair couldn't help but widen their eyes at the sheer _size_ of everything inside. The shelves were lined with both books and scrolls and stretched further to each side than either of them could rightly see. On top of that, Naruto's map - which he had left open - changed to the interior map of the library and had tabs for eleven floors as well as a basement and three sub-basements. "Okay, so I don't think we'll be learning everything about this world any time soon. Kind of makes me wish I'd taken that Scholar Class…"

 **Welcome to the Konohagakure Library! A library card has been added to your inventory with your Sector D clearance marked. You have access to floors 1, 2 and 3 as well as the computer lab on floor 4. If you attempt to access anywhere you don't have access to and are caught, your privileges will be permanently revoked. Reading any books here will spend 30 minutes of your time in exchange for gaining the knowledge within it. Alternatively, you can manually read it to search for specific information. For a full list of the rules and regulations, please read 'Library Rules and Regulations: Konohagakure Version.'**

"Alright, so, this certainly adds a new layer we have to deal with." Naruto noted. "It's about 11 AM, so even if we spend the rest of the day here until midnight that would be a total of 26 books each, and a potential of 47 books each day if we spent a whole 24 hours here with our thirty minutes of sleep factored in. Manually reading would probably take _much_ longer in almost every circumstance."

"What about buffs?" Shikamaru asked, gaining Naruto's attention. "If there are as many skills as Katsuyu made it sound like there was when I asked about it, then surely there could be at least one that would decrease the amount of time that's spent when reading?" Naruto thought about it and nodded.

"You have a point there. Alright, so we do need to read, but we also need to make sure we don't neglect other things. If we spend the next, oh… four hours here, then we should still have time to do a little exploring. We'll be out there until sundown and then we can come back here for another four hours. I think eight hours of study every day should be more than enough to get us acquainted with the world. On that note, I won't be taking any other levels into any class unless necessary until I feel like I know enough about the world to make a proper plan in how I'll build my character." Shikamaru thought about that for a moment.

"I can't really fault that logic. We have so little information to work on, even if some of the terms seem familiar. Mind if we stay in a party for a while? At least until I get the hang of this stuff." Naruto nodded, gaining a smile from Shikamaru. "Alright, so what should we start with?"

"Hm… How do I find specific books in the library?"

 **Q: I can't find the book I'm looking for, how can I locate it?**

 **A: Books can't leave the library, but it stays open all day and night so you can access them whenever you'd like. In order to locate a particular book or a group of books based on subject, you can use the command: 'Search Library' followed by whatever terms you'd like. You will then get the floor, bookcase number, shelf number, section and slot that you will find your book on. If it's currently off the shelf and in-use, it will also tell you as well as give you the option to be notified when it becomes available.**

"Okay, so I say we pick a subject to start with for today. Something that will be immediately useful and also explain some rules of this universe." Naruto muttered, trying to think.

"Why don't we look into the sciences?" Shikamaru suggested. "Perhaps we could start with biology and see if there are any major differences between the bodies we had before and these ones?" Naruto pondered that before nodding. "Search Library: Human Anatomy." The noble commanded as a new menu popped up with a list of several dozen books. "Hm… Chakra Evolution: How the Chakra Network Caused Divergent Genetics Via Bloodlines?" Naruto and Shikamaru looked at each other as he selected that one and they got a series of numbers as well as a trail to its location.

When they arrived to the proper bookcase on the second floor and picked it up, Shikamaru opened it and the pair read a bit of its summary. After getting through it, they came to a singular conclusion. "Every clan has a slightly different anatomy don't they?" Naruto asked. "If chakra can cause genetic mutations that give what amount to superpowers when the new organs interact with chakra, I think that biology might be a lot more… complex of a subject than we first anticipated." Shikamaru nodded just as Naruto got a new notification.

 **Your Wisdom has increased!**

 **Your Intelligence has increased!**

 **You have unlocked the Lore Skill Tree!**

 **You have gained the Knowledge (Chakra) Skill!**

Based on Shikamaru's own confused expression and the menus that popped up for him as well, Naruto assumed that he had received a similar set of messages. "Well, looks like learning grants us skills as well." The ravenette noted. "Observe. So, Knowledge is the skill, Lore is the tree and increasing our Knowledge level opens up new skills in the Lore tree."

"That makes sense. In short, gaining knowledge is actually a pretty practical thing to do, especially knowledge related to our class or playstyle. Speaking of playstyle, did you have anything in mind?" Shikamaru paused a moment before nodding.

"I was thinking about maybe becoming an assassin-type character. My Unique Ability is called Shadowstep and allows me to teleport through the shadows as long as I'm touching one shadow and the other one is in my line of sight. Seems like it would complement a sneak-type character the best." Naruto nodded and thought.

"Anatomy for more efficient kills, biology for poisons, chemistry and engineering for trapmaking, laws and culture so you can blend in anywhere in the world without drawing suspicion and a proper form for your weapon of choice would be best to start with then." Shikamaru looked at the blonde, a little amazed he had come up with that in a few seconds flat. "If you're going assassin, then I suppose I'll continue my current route into Fighter and become as much of a tank as I can through stats and skills. Still not going to level up yet though."

Shikamaru nodded and crossed his arms in thought. "Still, it looks like biology is the best place to start since we both need some knowledge in it." The boy looked at the book he held and handed it off to Naruto. "Here, you start with this one and I'll find one that's a little more suited to what I need. As a tank, its more likely you'll need to know what we're up against and have a way to counter it. If I'm in a position where I need to counter an attack, it means I haven't followed my playstyle and will probably die soon anyways." It was a little dark, but Naruto nodded his agreement as he sat at a nearby table. When he did so, the system responded in kind.

 **Would you like to read [Chakra Evolution]? It will take 30 minutes. Yes or no?**

Hitting the Yes button, Naruto watched as the book opened, closed, then disappeared in a flash of light. Narrowing his eyes, he looked at his status menu to see that it was now 11:42 AM. "It's that simple?" He whispered to himself in disbelief. "I don't even have to put it back up either."

 **Your Intelligence has increased by 4!**

 **Your Wisdom has increased by 7!**

 **Knowledge (Chakra) has leveled up to Level 5!**

 **Knowledge (Bloodlines) has been gained!**

 **Knowledge (Bloodlines) has leveled up to Level 3!**

With the new series of notifications taken care of, Naruto looked at his map again and saw that Shikamaru was at another table not far off from him. "Message Shikamaru: Let's meet back up at the entrance around 3 PM. Try not to go over the time by too much, I'd rather not have either of us waiting half an hour for the other. Send." Completely assuming how the private messaging system functioned seemed to work in the blonde's favor as it showed up in a small chat bubble near the bottom of his vision. Now, what should he learn next…?


End file.
